Airship



' L. 'H. DONNELL ETAL Oct. 19, 1948.

AIRSHIP s sheets-sheet 1 Original Filed July 16, 1941 Fi/e/ Gas Fi/e/ Gas INVENTORB [.Zgyd H Donnell k law/n L. S/ran 2 A H0 mvzy Fye/ Gas Lift/77g 64s 1948- L. H. DbNNELL ETAL 2, 1

AIRSHIP Original Filed July 16, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 I Ill-Ill.

Illill U INVENTOR. Lloyd /7. Donnel/ 1 BY [lg/21 L Shaw AJTORNEY L. H. DONNELL ETAL 2,451,815

AIRSHIP 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 Original Filed July 16, 1941 Lloyd ll fia/me/Z I 491 21 L haw Clan/nag Oct. 19, 1948.

AIRSHIP a Sheet s-Sheet 4 Original Filed July 16, 1941 Fi/e/ Gas INVENTORS' 'Llqyd If. Donnell BY Ely/'11 L. Shaw W fiEFNEY Oct. 19, 1948. H. DONNELL ET AL 2,451,1'5

AIRSHIP Original Filed July 16, 1941 I 6 Shets-Sheet 5 AHURNE'Y L. H. DONNELL ET AL Oct. 19, 1948.

AIRSHIP 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Original Filed July 16, 1941 WU. e m

Patented Oct. 19, 1948 AIRSHIP Lloyd H. Donnell, Chicago, Ill., and Elgin L. Shaw,

Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, assignors to Wingfoot Corporation, Wilmington, De1., a corporation of Delaware Original application July 16, 1941, Serial No.

Divided and this application September'25, 1945, Serial No. 618,562

This invention is a division of the patent application, Airships, Serial No. 402,586, filed July 16, 1941, now Patent No. 2,396,494 of March12, 1946, and relates in particular to the construction of the empennage. i

The conventional empennage arrangement of airships consists of a pair of horizontal and verticalfins to each pair of which are attached control surfaces functioning as elevators and rudders, respectively. In this case the elevators as well as the rudders are operated separately On the other hand, the construction according-to the invention provides finshaving control surfaces hinged thereto which are arranged diagonally, that is, at an angle to the horizontal plane. With this arrangement there are no separate elevator and rudder surfaces. Instead, when turning either one of the two control wheels all control surfaces move at once as elevator controls or as rudder controls, respectively, and when turning both control wheels in the same or opposite direction a combination of these functions will be the result.

The general object of this invention is to improve the control and operation of the airship in the air as well as on the ground.

Another object of this invention is to permit the start of the airship at relatively large angle With the horizontal plane without damage to control surfaces and fins. Another object of this invention is to increase the rudder-force in vertical or in horizontal direction, as the case may be, by employing in each case all the control surfaces simultaneously by the operation of only one of the control wheels.

Another object of this invention is topermit a far greater vertical distance of the lowest point of the fins or control surfaces from. the lowest point of the greatest diameter of the gas container or hull.

For a better understanding of thisinvention, reference will now be made to the accompanying drawings of which: J ,l

Figures 1 and 1a are a vertical longitudinal section taken through the center of theairship.

Figures 2 and 2a are bottom views of Figures 1 and la, respectively, with most of the outer cover along the gangways omitted.

Figj3 represents in enlarged scale, a flexible joint of the longitudinal corridor at points A.

Fig. 4, also in enlarged scale, is a longitudinal section through the outer cover at the points B and C of Figures 1 and 1a, respectively.

Fig. 5, left side, is a rear view ofthe airship, and the right side is a cross-section taken on the line VV in Fig. 1.

Fig. 6 is a cross-section taken on the line VI-VI in Fig. 1a.

Fig. '7 is a cross-section in enlarged scale of the corridor as shown in Fig. 6.

9 Claims. (01. 244-96) Fig. 8 is a diagrammatic view of the rudder and elevator control, operated mechanically.

Fig. 9 is a modification of this control, operated hydraulically. l

Fig. 10 is a diagram showing the position of the control surfaces when operated as elevators only, the arrow indicating the direction in which the stern moves. 7 f

Fig. 11 is a diagram showing the positionbfthe control surfaces when operated as rudders only, the arrow indicating the direction in which the stern moves. 1

Figs. 12 and 13 are diagrams showing theposition of the control surfaces as a result of operating" the rudder and elevator worm shafts at the same speed, the arrow indicating the direction in which the stern moves.

Fig. 14 is a perspective view of the empennage of the airship showing more clearly the connection of the control lines tothe control surfaces.

Fig. 15 is a perspective view in larger scale, of the rudder and elevator surface control mechanism.

Fig. 16 is a vertical longitudinal section of a modification of the airship construction shown in Figures 1 and 1a.

Fig. 17 is a horizontal section taken on the center line of Fig. 16.

Fig. 18 is a rear end view of Fig. 16; and

Fig. 19 is a cross-section taken on the line XIX--XIX of Fig. 16.

Referring to the drawings, numeral ll represents the outer gas bag or envelope of the airship which is provided with spherical bulkheads l2 and I3 located at the bow and at the stern, respectively. Each one of these bulkhead forms, together with the front and rear portion respectively of the envelope l I, a separate gas container which is kept at about twice the pressure as that in the main gas space to make the bow and stern sufficiently resistant against aerodynamic forces acting upon them, thereby dispensing with the conventional air resistance creating battens on the outside of the envelope. In order to secure a smoothouter shape of the envelope and to avoid bulging of some where the bulkheads l2 and I3 are connected to it, thatis, where the difference in pressure on the envelopeoccurs, inner reinforcing strips l4 and 15, made of different widths, are staggered like the edges Hiand ll" of the bulkheadsythus gradually decreasing again the wall of the envelope towards the ends to its normal thickness. Airbags I8 and I9, respectively, control the pressure in the front and rear gas cells. Within the envelope II a fuel gas container 20, suspended by aprons 2| from the top of theenvelope, is provided with an inflation line 22 (see Fig. 5)- suspended by supports 23, and feeds the power units 24. The space which be-i comes free while the fuel gas is being consumed is taken up by air forced into the bags 25 and 2B which keep the main envelope always in taut condition. Bulkheads 21 divide the fuel gas container into several compartments to reduce surging of the gas. For the same purpose also the larger airbag 26 is provided with a bulkhead 2B. To protect the lifting gas against-superheat, loose curtains 29 (Fig. made of light gas-proof fabric, are suspended just a short distance away from the airship envelope. These curtains also are to serve the purpose to automatically sealthe envelope against loss of gas in case of injury.

The structural portion of the airship consists of a longitudinal gangway framework 3 1 of triangular cross-sectional .shape extending inside along'the bottom in thecenter of the airship and of a transverse triangular 'gangway 32.

The longitudinal gangway carries practically all the service loads of the airship distributed over its .-length, likeliquid fuel, -oil, ballast, :etc. and the control car-33 iszattached underneath. This car is equipped with a retractable :l-anding wheel 34. If desired, airplanes may also be suspended from this gang-way as indicated in dotteddines'in Figures land-1a.

One of .the new features of this .airship construction is that the load carrying longitudinal gangway is entirely supported by 'catenaries .35 extendin circumferentiall-y (from the gasenvelope without requiring any interior suspension members. To combine the advantages of a non-rigid airship with that of a rigid gang-way structure this rigid structure is .made in .four sections 36 telescoping .into each other :as in Fig. 3. The chord members .31 and 38 of these sections are provided .at one end with welded-in stubs 39 (Fig. 3) which are made with sunicient clearance as to be easily slidable in the chord members of an adjacent gang-way :section. Thus, the slidable joints .are made sufliciently .transversally flexible to permit the gangway to follow the changing shape of the airship envelope during flight without creating undue stresses in the structure which, therefore, can be made relatively light in weight. This joint construction, though not capable of resisting bending, .tension and compression forces, can transmit shear forces. Lateral-ly the longitudinal gangway is braced by :StllltS 411 (see Fig. '7) which are jointed ,pivotally at their inner ends .at 4| to the upper chord member v3l' of the .gangway, .and their'outer ends 42 are connected by braces ,43.made.of wire .or cable to the lower chord member 33. These braces 43 also connect to .the .catenaries .35 of the envelope.

The construction of the transverse gangway 32 to which are attached .outriggers 46 carrying the power units ;24.is similar to that of the longitudinal jgangway, however, with the difference that its outer chord members 4-! are hinged to the longitudinal gangway as at 4'8, and onl the inner chord member 4.9 is .made slidable .at .59 similar to the construction shown in Fig. 3, giving the transverse gangway the necessary flexibility. A cable .51 connects (the top ends of the transverse gangway ,to limit their spreadingapart. The transverse gangwa'y s Supported by the envelope by means of catenaries 52 (see Figures 2 and 2a). Catenaries .53 near theequator in the side of and tangentially .to the envelope take up the propeller thrust .and most of the engine weight... The opening-s .between the gangway c-atenaries are closed by covers 54 and :55 respectively, which .are laced and .sealed to the :en-- velope. On the inside, the bottom gangway 4 structure isenclosed bya fabric covering 56 (see Fig. 7), and fireproof coverings 51 (see Fig. 5) enclose portions of the side gangways to provide for engine control rooms 58.

Another new feature of this airship construction is the diagonal arrangement of the empennage consisting of fins 6| and of control surfaces 62. This arrangement has the advantage that injuries to the control surfaces due to takeoifs and landings are less likely to occur than is the case withthe conventional empennage arrangement. Thus, a steeper take-ofi is possible which is necessary when starting with overloads. With this new arrangement all four control surfaces are operated simultaneously, either from the control car at ,33or from the rear end-of'the gangway 36 from one handwheel, either as elevators or as rudders, respectively. Therefore, in each case a larger control surface area is available. However, due to the diagonal arrangement of the surfaces only a component of the force acting on them is effective, either vertically or horizontally. Whereas, when both handwheels are operated, sayat the same speed, .always one pair of surfaces lying in the same ,plane .is

counteracted in its movements b opposite operating forces and thus remains in .zero position; but the other pair of surfacesbecause-both wheels tend to rotate them in .the same direction, .are deflected at an angle twiceas large as when all four surfaces are deflected simultaneously.

Fig. 8 illustrates an example of a control mechanism for the elevatorsand-rudders of which and 64 are worm shafts :operated'eitherby handwheels 65 or by worm gears 66 ,in engagement with worms 6! driven by servo motors (not shown). The Worm shafts .63 and 64 operate upon differential shafts 68 and .59, respectively, on each of which is mounted a differential gear l0 provided with a sprocket 1.1. The worms .14 and 15 on the elevator .worm shaft-at E are both right hand, whereas the worms .16 and H on the rudder worm shaft at R are .right hand and left hand, respectively. The sprockets II of bothdifferential gears work by chains 18 upon sprockets 19, each of which being .fixedly connected to a pair of sprockets and revolving together loosely about a fixed transmission .shaft 8|. Control lines operate over .the sprockets 80 and sheaves 85 to actuate the levers B1 to thus control the surfaces '62. Both pairs of controlsurfaces'can be operated together by either the worm shaft :63 only as elevators or by the worm shaft 64 only as rudders. When operating both worm shafts at the same time the movement of one pair of .surfaces, due to the differential gears will be accelerated in the same direction and the angle of deflection increased proportionately, and that of the other pair will be accordingly retarded or completely nullified, depending on the speed and direction of rotation of the worm shafts.

A modification of the elevator and rudder control, described above, is illustrated by Fig. .9, in

which the mechanical control is substituted by a hydraulic type.

The operating spindles 9| at 'E and "92 at .-R, one operating the control surfaces as elevators and the other one operating .these same surfaces as rudders, are made to turn either by hand or by servo motor as described 'for mechanical .control. Each spindle turning in 'afbearing 93, .locatedbetweenand connecting .a pair of hydraulic cylinders 94, engages a crosshead 95, both ends of which are linked to piston rods 96 .for moving the pistons 91 in the cylinders 94. On the :othcr hand the levers or segments 8'! of each control surface are connected similarly as shown in Fig. 8, by cables trained over pulleys 86 to opposite ends of a piston rod IOI of the piston I02 moving in the transmission cylinder I03 50 that when the piston is moved the control surface 62 is deflected accordingly. Corresponding ends of each pair of these cylinders pertaining to a pair of control surfaces which swing about the same axis are connected by a hose or pipe line I04. In order to manipulate from one operating spindle, for instance, the elevator spindle E, all control surfaces at once, the ends of one operating cylinder are connected to the; lines I04 of one pair of transmission cylinders, and the ends of the other operating cylinders are connected to the lines I04 of the other pair of transmission cylinders by lines I05 in such a way that when the operating spindle is turned the transmission liquid, by means of the pistons of the transmission cylinder, causes all control surfaces to deflect in one direction, that is, either up or down, depending on which way the spindle is turned (see Fig.

The operating cylinders at R are also connected to the lines I04, but in such a way that when their pistons move one pair of control surfaces deflects upwardly and the other pair downwardly and in opposite directions, respectively, depending on the direction in which the spindle turns. That is, because in this case the connections at I04 of the lines I05 coming from the cylinder 94 at the right side are reversed as compared with the connections of the lines I05 coming from the left cylinder 94, and therefore the control surfaces act as rudders (see Fig. 11). indicates the direction in which the stern of the airship will move.

When operating both the elevator control E and the rudder control R, at the same speed-two operating pistons, one from E and the other one from R, work upon one pair of control surfaces in the same direction causing a 100% of the possible deflection (see Figs. 12 and 13), whereas the two other operating cylinders are cut short. In other words, the liquid in the front chamber of one of these operating cylinders is pushed into the rear chamber of the other operating cylinder and vice-versa. Therefore, no forces are acting upon the other pair of control surfaces and it remains in its position. The deflected pair of control surfaces then acts simultaneously as an elevator and as a rudder and the ship will move in vertical and in transverse direction. Of course, when turning both spindles simultaneously but at a different rate of speed a lesser percentage of deflection than 100% of the one pair of surfaces, and some deflection of the other pair of surfaces, will be the result. It is seen, that this hydraulically operated control acts exactly like a mechanically operated control.

A simplified modification of this invention adaptable particularly for airships of smaller size is illustrated by the Figures 16 to 19, in which the numeral III represents the flexible bag containing the lifting gas. A load carrying gangway II2 of triangular cross-section is made up of sections I I3, I I4 and H5, which are connected by hinges IIS and by transversally flexible sliding joints II'I similar to that shown in Fig. 3, to permit the gangway to yield vertically sufficiently to adapt itself to eventual deformations of the gas bag and to prevent undue stresses in the rigid structure. The gangway which is oblong in shape carries all loads including the Outriggers II8 which support the power plants H9, and is The arrow suspended entirely by the catenaries I20 extend ing from the edge along the bottom of the gas bag. The position of the gangway is located con siderably below and substantially parallel to the equator of the airship and its outer contour corresponds substantially to that of the gas bag, except at the rear end whereit emerges into the gas bag and at the front where it somewhat pro-,

connect, the four engine Outriggers II8 are attached. Along the inside upper edge of the gangway girders and along the upper edges of the'transverse girders air ballonets I are attached, and sealing strips I26 cover these girders to make the gas bag gas-tight at the bottom. The bottom cover I2I of the airship which closes the airbags against the outside is fastened by means of catenaries I28 to the bottom edge of the gangway I i2. The open space between the catenaries of the gas bag and those of the airbags is sealed by cover strips I29. Diaphragms I30 divide the air space into four compartments to prevent too much surging of the air and to secure better maneuverability of the airship.

The four fins I and control surfaces I36 are arranged in the same way as described for the earlier presented construction. A landing wheel I 31 is attached to each one of the bottom fins for their protection, and a retractable landing wheel 138 is built into and underneath the bottom cover which acts as a landing cushion.

The control room I40 from which the airship is being operated is located at the front of and between the lateral gangway girders.

Having described this invention in detail, it is to be understood that its construction is not limited to the examples presented and illustrated, but that many changes and combinations may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention as defined by the. attached claims.

We claim:

1. An airship comprising a hull, an empennage carried by the stern of said hull, said empennage consisting of two pairs of fins the planes of which cross each other, including a control surface hinged to the end of each fin, the pairs of fins being arranged at an angle to the horizontal, an elevator control spindle and a rudder control spindle, two sprocket-equipped differential gears each of which being in operative engagement with both of said control spindles, two sets of freely rotating transmission sprockets, one of said sets being driven by the one differential sprocket andthe other set of sprockets being driven by the other differential sprocket, control lines operatively connecting the one set of sprockets to one pair of control surfaces and the other set of sprockets to the other pair of control surfaces.

2. An airship comprising a hull, an empennage at the stern of said hull consisting of two pairs of fins including control surfaces hinged thereto, said pairs of fins being arranged crosswise to each other at an angle of about 40 to to the horizontal, an elevator control shaft, a rudder control shaft, and power transmission means between said shafts and said surfaces constructed art-rpm and arranged for simultaneously actuating all of said'surfaces by each one-of said'control-shafts, thatis, as elevators and as-rudders, respectively. 3. An airship comprising-a hull, an empennage at the stern of said hull consisting of two pairs offins including control surfaces hinged thereto, said pairs of fins beingarranged crosswise toeach other at an angle of about 40 to to the'horizontal, an-elevator-control shaft, a rudder control shaft, and power transmission means betweensaidshafts andsaidsurfacesconstructed and arranged for simultaneously actuating all of said surfaces by each one of said control shafts, that is, as elevators and as rudders, respectively, and-also-simultaneously by both shafts as a combination of elevators andrudders.

4:. An airship comprisinga hull, an empennageat the stern of said hull consisting of two pairs of fins including control surfaces hinged thereto, said pairs of fins being arranged crosswise-to each other at an angle of about 40 to 45 tothe horizontal, an elevator control shaft, a rudder control shaft, and mechanical power transmission means between said shafts andsaid surfaces constructed and arranged for simultaneously actuating all of said surfaces by each one a, rudder control shaft, and hydraulic power transmission means between said shafts and said surfaces constructed and arranged for simultaneously actuating all of saicl surfaoesby each' one of said control shafts, that is, as elevators and as-rudders, respectively.

6. An airship comprising a. hull,- an empennage at the stern of said hulliconsisting of'two pairs of'fins including control surfaces hinged thereto, said pairs of fins being arranged crosswise to each other and eachpair being. normally l l disposed in a single plane and at an. angle to the horizontal, an elevator control shaft, a'rudder control shaft, and power. transmission means between said shafts and said surfaces .col'is-tructedv and arranged for simultaneously actuating all of said surfaces by each one of said shafts, that is, as elevators and as rudders, respectively, as Well as by both shafts as a combination of elevators and rudders.

'7. An airship comprising a hull, twopairs of fiins including control surfaces disposed: at the stern of said hull and positioned substantially at angles of 40 to 45 to the horizontal, ,a controlmechanism for actuating said-surfaces, said mechanism including two control shafts each-one having. separate driving means, power transmission means between said control shafts and said surfacesconstructed and arranged to actuate. all of said surfaces from each one of said shafts in such a way that when actuated from the. one

shaft all-of said surfaces function as elevators, but when actuatedfrom the other one of said shafts, all of said surfaces function as rudders, and when simultaneously actuated from both of said shafts, said surfaces function as a combi-. nation of elevators and rudders.

8. An airshipcomprising a hull, twopairs of fins, a control surface hinged toeach fin all of which being simultaneously operated. as elevators' and as rudders, respectively, said pairs of fins being arranged crosswise to each other and being positioned at angles of substantially 40 to 45 to thehorizontal; a control mechanism constructed and arranged to be operated manually and by motor power, respectively, for actuating said surfaces, said mechanism including two worm shafts each of which having two worms,

the worms of the one shaft being threaded: in

eluding a sprocket freely rotatable about each one Of said differential shafts and operatively engaging therewith; a fixed transmission shaft parallel to said differential shafts, two sets of three sprockets each, each set having a common hub rotatable about said transmission shaft, one sprocket of each'one of said sets being operatively connected-with the sprocket of one of saiddifferential gear drives, and two sprockets of' each one of said sets being-operatively connected with one pair of control surfaces lying in the same plane, respectively, for deflecting said surfaces to either side from the zero position.

9. An airship comprising a hull, an empennage at the stern of said hull including'twopairs of control surfaces arranged crosswise to each other and each pair being normally disposed in a single plane and at an angle to-the horizontal, an elevator control spindle and a rudder control spindle, two pairsof hydraulic operating cylinders includingpistons' and rods, the piston rodsof one pair of these cylinders being operatively connected with the elevator operating spindle and the piston rods-of the other pair of these cylinders being connected in the same way with the rudder operating spindle, four transmission cylinders including. piston and: rods, the ends of each transmission piston rod being in operative engagement: with a. corresponding control. surface, aliquid carrying line' system connecting the ends of one of the; elevator operating cylinders with the. ends of one pair of' the transmission cylinders and connecting the endsof; thetother elevator operating cylinder with the ends of the other pair of the transmission cylinders in such a. way that when the elevator spindle isturned the-pairs of; the control surfaces deflect symmetrically to .th-evertical center line and similarly connecting the rudder: operating. cylinderswith thetransmissioncylinders butso that when operating the rudder spindle the'pairsof control surfaces deflectsymmetrically to the horizontal center liner LLOYD. H. .DONN'ELL. ELGIN-L. SHAW;

REFERENCES; CITED:

The following references are of record in the. file of-"thispatent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS- Number Name Date 1,750,141 Upson Mar. 11, 1930 1,336,681 Palmquist Dec; 15, 1931 

